


A Problem of Presentation

by yuletide_archivist



Category: The Persuaders
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-14
Updated: 2008-12-14
Packaged: 2018-01-25 06:35:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1636745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yuletide_archivist/pseuds/yuletide_archivist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Brett and Danny surprise each other, and an innocent blonde is caught in the crossfire.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Problem of Presentation

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Carmilla

 

 

> "So what do you think?" Danny twirled, curving his back enough to demonstrate the lines of the peacock blue suit.  
> Softly plush and wickedly fitted, it clung to his curves like a welcoming hand.
> 
> "Oh, very nice."
> 
> "You don't think it looks, I don't know, fruity?"
> 
> Brett blinked. "I had always rather assumed that was your intention." 
> 
> Danny reacted with mild disgust, or impatience. "Now how am I supposed to get anywhere with Carol tonight if she thinks I'm some kind of a queen?"
> 
> There was an odd noise. Brett rubbed his jaw. "Well, if you'll forgive me for saying so, matters aren't always so black and white." 
> 
> Brett had chosen to tread delicately; Danny went sharp. _"I_ know that, but I'm pretty sure _she_ doesn't know that. Tell you the truth, I'm sort of surprised that _you_ know anything about it. What, what's funny?"
> 
> "I am a grown man, Daniel, and besides, surely you're aware that while I do enjoy the company of women on a reasonably regular basis, I'm primarily homosexual." 
> 
> "Sure, I— _what?"_
> 
> Brett seemed surprised too. Just a little. He stayed at ease in the chair like nothing had happened, like he was waiting for another cup of tea. 
> 
> "And you never thought to tell me that? You never thought I might want to know?" 
> 
> Brett sat up a bit more. "But you're the last person I would imagine objecting, given your—own little ways, and at any rate, I thought it was obvious."
> 
> "Thought it was—Yeah, yeah, okay. Thought it was obvious. You know what's obvious—"
> 
> Danny had lost his temper, suddenly and without cause, turning this way and that and working himself up into a lather. "—Here." He fumbled in his wallet, pulled out some notes and thrust them down into an astonished Brett's breast pocket. "Fifty pounds. Go buy yourself a pair of glasses."
> 
> He stormed out, leaving Brett agape. 
> 
> Brett was initially tempted to dismiss the whole incident from his mind. Danny was temperamental. Who knew what had set him off this time? Perhaps he felt Brett had been keeping secrets from him, although that would be nonsense. Or perhaps his masculine pride had been offended by frank discussion of what they had both already known. A certain amount of hypocrisy often came with the territory.
> 
> And yet, Danny had seemed... well, Brett would almost have said he seemed _seriously_ upset, which was ridiculous, of course. Danny never bothered himself much over anything. And so Brett pondered as the night wore on, pulling his chin and shaking his head, once or twice turning his drink to examine it as if the answers might be found in some previously unsuspected contamination. 
> 
> About an hour past midnight a look of foolish surprise crossed his face, and he nearly missed the table when he put his glass down. Some uncertain pacing followed, an internal argument or two, a heroic pose out of which he sagged. Finally he gave a firm nod and reached for his coat.
> 
>   
> 
> 
> "Great, great. You do that. Oh, just a minute. Huh, wonder who that could be?" Danny stopped rubbing his hands and took a detour to the door, checking his watch right before he opened it. Was it—
> 
> "Danny. I wonder if I might have a moment of your time." Brett brushed past Danny's subtle attempt to indicate that he had company, kicking Danny's blocking foot aside without appearing to notice it. 
> 
> "Well, actually," Danny said, turning, still holding the door, "I'm a little busy at the moment. This is my friend, Carol. Remember I was telling you about her?" He hoped this didn't turn out to be some kind of emergency, because tonight was looking to go right on schedule. 
> 
> Carol stepped back into her shoes and came over, smiling, blonde and pretty and ready to be polite, and Brett put on the charm. "Ah—Carol, yes. Such a pleasure to meet you at last. I've called you a cab."
> 
> She lowered her hand and blinked. "What?" 
> 
> Before Danny could finish asking that too, with more of a "the hell" on the end, Brett was ushering Danny's date out the door, a hand at the small of her back, talking over her stuttering. "A pity... yes... another time." 
> 
> Brother, this better be good. Danny tried to get in there too, "I'm sorry, I, uh, we'll—I'll call you." Her big startled eyes met his as she spun on the porch, mouth open, and Brett shut the door firmly. 
> 
> Danny demanded, "All right, what's the big idea?" 
> 
> Brett looked away, looked back at him, started to fold his arms and straighten up, then dropped them to his sides and announced, "Glasses." Danny stared. "I don't need them."
> 
> The air drying in his mouth reminded him to close it. 
> 
> Oh, oh, oh, Brett was kidding him. He was _kidding_ him. Thought he could just walk in here... Danny stomped away, making fists. 
> 
> "Come now, it's not such a bad thing, is it? You were vexed I didn't know, now you're angry that I do, it's hardly fair, is it, Daniel?" Brett had followed him. Danny refused to look around. 
> 
> Hands closed on his shoulders and pulled him back for a gentle collision. Unimpressed, he stood rigid, fuming. Even though... yeah, that was, under the ear, that was a good spot, but... "I am sorry to have been so tediously slow about it," Brett was saying smoothly, as he nosed down under the corner of Danny's jaw, around to the base of his hair, anywhere to get a reaction. "But it's not every day one finds out that a friend—a very good friend—has been looking at one in that way." 
> 
> Brett's fingers tightened before Danny could do more than think about pulling away, and the tall, warm body behind him pressed closer. 
> 
> "It is if you're paying attention," Danny said, not coming off as mad as he'd meant to. He wanted to sound like there might be fisticuffs, and instead he sounded more kind of sullen. Like a sulky child, and Brett was making it better. 
> 
> "I'm here now," Brett said, and it would have been more than what a guy could stand for, him sounding that smug, trying to hand Danny a line, except—it was Brett. "Enlighten me?"
> 
> Danny pushed free and turned around to tell Brett a thing or two, all right, but he hadn't pushed very far and what with one thing and another and turning around inside Brett's arms, he didn't end up talking. No, not much. 
> 
> Brett was liberating Danny's collar buttons and Danny had Brett's scarf on the floor and Brett was looking pretty foolish, now, between liplocks. Dazed. Danny gave him another one, a real smacker. Yeah, now who couldn't think straight. 
> 
> Brett said softly, "It's a funny thing, but do you know, I think I need my ears checked."
> 
> "Your ears too now, huh?"
> 
> Bending to kiss his neck again, Brett said, "Yes, I keep hearing a buzzing."
> 
> "Oh, that's the door," Danny said, stretching his chin with an added "mmm." He liked that. 
> 
> "Ah." Brett kept going. 
> 
> Danny woke up. "The door! That's Carol!" 
> 
> He shoved Brett a little bit. "Carol can go to blazes," Brett mumbled into his collar with a true aristocrat's lack of chivalry.
> 
> "Why would she come back here, she musta forgotten something. I have to let her in." 
> 
> Brett straightened up and shook back his hair impatiently, as Danny left him behind. "A queen and a gentleman," he observed. "I'm impressed."
> 
> "Funny." 
> 
> The door opened on Carol's "I—I forgot my purse. Danny, what—" She stared.
> 
> Danny surreptitiously tugged at his shirttails, which had come loose since the last time she saw him. Brett's arm reached past, handing the girl her green beaded purse through the door.
> 
> "There you are. It was on the chair. These late nights are murder on the complexion, aren't they? Drive safely," Brett said. 
> 
> Carol grabbed onto it and started asking questions again, trying to walk in. "Look, I'm sorry, kid," Danny said, not moving, and feeling maybe a little like a heel, especially with his voice gone all rough from someone else's ideas. "I'll make it up to you soon, okay? My treat. I'll call—" 
> 
> She flinched back as the door shut in her face, Brett's big palm pushing it closed.
> 
> "Now wait a minute, it's going to be hard enough getting her back on the string as it is," Danny protested. 
> 
> Brett let out a breath. "I think perhaps it may be you who needs his eyes checked," he said.
> 
> "Huh?" He didn't get Brett's expression.
> 
> Brett shook his head and strode off, saying, "I'll probably have the very dubious pleasure of explaining that to you eventually, but for now—" he settled into the low modern lounge chair, looking just as at home as anywhere—"I'd prefer a glass of champagne." He picked up Carol's and waggled it encouragingly. "Ideally, one with a little less lipstick."
> 
> Danny shook his head, but moved to pour him a fresh glass. "You are a piece of work, your lordship." 
> 
> When their fingers touched, they held still, and Brett, looking up at him, stopped smiling entirely. 
> 
> "Hmmm," Danny said, finally forgiving him, and sank down onto Brett's lap. Gracefully, if he did say so himself.
> 
> "I fear," Brett said, a few kisses later, when there was a chance to talk again for a minute, "our lives are about to get more complicated." 
> 
> "I'll say," Danny said dreamily, picking up one of the baby blue sleeves on either side of Brett that looked like they were trying to hug him, and running it through his fingers. "You know what this is?" Brett made a surprised noise and craned his eyes, trying to see. "This is Carol's coat."
> 
> Buzzzz.
> 
> Brett sighed, and they separated far enough to look at each other. "Then might I suggest we—adapt to the inevitable."
> 
> "You mean—"
> 
> Brett ran a curved hand down the outside of Danny's leg and squeezed. "We can always have this little conversation in more detail another time, on a more private occasion. For tonight, however..."
> 
> Danny grinned at him. "Now you're talking."
> 
>   
> 
> 
> Carol was hanging back from the entry this time when they opened the door, two men standing silhouetted in the light spilling out, giving matching big encouraging smiles, and pulled her in, an arm around each side. 
> 
> "Carol, let's do introductions again, sweetheart, Carol, this is my good friend Brett. Lord Brett, actually, and Brett, this is my good friend Carol. I hope the two of you can be good friends too. Can you do that?"
> 
> "Well, I..."
> 
> "Good, good, now that we're all good friends..."
> 
> The door swung closed. The cab driver, who by now had nearly finished a cigar, waited philosophically. 
> 
> Shortly thereafter there were two sharp audible slaps, followed by the sound of a shrill, raised voice, and the door flew open again, the young lady storming out. The men called after her once each, shrugged, put the comradely arm around each other this time, and turned away. 
> 
> The blonde came up to him, clutching her coat about her shoulders. 
> 
> "I have never," she said, struggled to go on, then huffed and got into the car. 
> 
> The cabbie dropped the cigar butt and trod on it. He glanced up again at the silent façade. This was the Wilde place, wasn't it? He would have thought any girl who'd be here at this time of night knew what she was getting into, but there it was, you never could tell with some people. 

 


End file.
